Life tastes better with Allegro

For over 40 years, Allegro has inspired with products that make food better and bring people together. Discover how our marinades add flavor and richness to every meal.

Good food creates

Founded in 1977 by proud Tennesseans Dave and Betsy Wilcox, Allegro Fine Foods has built its brand around good food and good community. Whether you’re cooking over a campfire, grilling in the backyard, or whipping up a quick family dinner, we hope you enjoy Allegro-made foods with the people you care about most while making memories you’ll smile about for years.

“Dave always told me to work hard, pay attention to the details, and let the big things take care of themselves. He never asked anyone to do a job he wouldn't do himself and was always looking for ways to share his success with others.”

PRESIDENT JOHN FUQUA ON ALLEGRO FOUNDER, DAVE WILCOX

Quality taste with everything you love.

And nothing you don’t.

Gluten Free

All Allegro products are certified gluten free, so you can rest assured that everyone around the table will enjoy their meal.

Kosher

We put our best into every bottle of Allegro and our production and distribution facility is 100% kosher!

GFSI Certified

You can always have confidence that our products are made with the highest standards under the Global Food Safety Initiative.

Delicious!

Whether you’re a family chef, a backyard barbecuer or a jerky-making master, Allegro makes food taste better so that life tastes better.

Small-town to Nationwide

From selling out of the back of a Dodge camper van to becoming a national distributor for stores like Kroger, Publix, Albertsons, Walmart and Amazon, Allegro is always ready to try new things to bring our product into your home.

An exciting future guided by a celebrated past.

Dave and Betsy Wilcox built Allegro on a foundation of community, hardwork and innovation. They prized people over profits and quality over quantity. We’re proud to follow in their footsteps.

1977

After years spent owning a successful Italian restaurant, Dave and Betsy Wilcox decided to make the move into full-time marinade making and distribution. Taking its name from the Italian word for cheerfulness and glee, Allegro was born with the mission to make food better and bring people together. From day one, our focus was quality over quantity, putting our best into every bottle so that Allegro always has everything you love – and nothing you don’t. So whether you’re a family chef, a backyard barbecuer or a jerky-making master, Allegro is here to help food taste better and to make life taste better.

1980s

The 1980s were all about putting in the hard work to make a good idea great. With grit and hustle, the Allegro team pursued every opportunity, including the hiring of their first full-time employee, John Fuqua. With that same spirit of tenacity and creativity, John began his tenure as a salesman making calls out of a Dodge camper van and cooking up samples in the van’s mini-kitchen for prospective clients. John would eventually follow in Dave Wilcox’s footsteps as the next president of Allegro. The 80s also marked the beginning of a thriving relationship with Kroger, which became the first brand to begin nationally distributing Allegro Original and Allegro Hickory Smoke marinades.

1990s

As an established brand with a growing national presence, Allegro spent the 90s getting creative about our marinades and building a company that had three main priorities: people, the planet and profit – in that order. During this time, we expanded our product lines by adding four new recipes: Hot & Spicy, Teriyaki, Game Tame and the Gold Buckle Brisket and Fajita sauce. In 1992, Dave established the Betsy Ross Foundation to honor of his late wife (Betsy died in 1985) and her commitment to bettering the world. For the past 20 years, charitable initiatives of Allegro and the Betsy Ross Foundation have made significant contributions to everything from the conservation of the wetlands to disaster relief and recovery to educational opportunities.

2000s

These were the years Allegro truly discovered our niche – one that was found in a passion for good food and its ability to bring people together. Because we believe that we need food to survive but we need good food to thrive. And we believe that truly good food is meant for more than just sustenance, it’s meant to build community. From the establishment of our award-winning cooking team to the beginning of our contract packaging services, offered in the wake of Hurricane Katrina for businesses who lost their facilities, Allegro continuously found ourselves somewhere in the middle between good food and good community, using our little marinade to make life better for people all over the country. Oh, and we also launched our first official barbecue sauce! Because we’re always looking for something new!

Today

And that’s where we find ourselves today – in the middle of creating an exciting future that is guided by our celebrated past. Dave and Betsy gave us a foundation of dedication, innovation and family-oriented growth and we’re proud to follow in their footsteps. And did we mention we’re celebrating our 40th Anniversary?

Keep your inbox marinated, y’all

Sign up to receive updates on new Allegro products and happenings, fresh off the grill straight to your inbox.